Improvement in corn-planters



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W; F. TUNNARD, oF .EAST BA'roN Rouen PARISH, Loi-Hermany l Letters .Patent No.. 93,140, dated'iuly' 27, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT 1N CORN-PLANTERS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making partof the same.

To all whom it may concern..- v

Be it known that I, -W. F. TUNnA/RD, of the parish of East Baton Rouge, State of Louisiana, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Corn-Planters; and I do hereby declare the following toi be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed. draning, making a part of this specication, in whichi Figure l is a side elevation of a machine, in which my improvement is presented;

Figure 2, a sectional view of the same machine, on linealgiig. 3; and

Figure 3, a plan or top view of it.

The object .of my invention is to simplify, cheapen, and make more eiificient C. W. McGlanahans iinprovenxent in cotton-seed and corn-planters, as patented by him, November 27, 1860, 'so as to make the corn-planter distinct and separate vfrom the cottonplanter; and'I accomplish my object by dispensing with the cotton-seed stiirer, so called in said patent, the arch -brmed cover-within the hopper-recipient for the seed, and one of the crank-arms used in Mc- Olanahans lnachine, to lwit, the one which operates the stirrer, and by substituting a triangular iiuke to cover the seed after they are dropped, in lieu of the side coverers that are employed in said machine.

But my invention will be more quickly and better understood by referring to thedrawings, on `which the same letters denote corresponding parts at all the gures.

A is the hopper-recipient for the seed to be planted, which may be of the form shown, or of 'any other that is equally suitable.

This hopper is placedfrelatively to the other parts of the machine, substantially as shown, and at its bottoni I introduce a transverse shaft, B, on which is mounted, (as shown at iig. 3,) a seed-dropping drum or cylinder C, three'inches in vlength and two inches in diameter, or thereabouts.

Around the circumferential surface of drum C, I make the perforations or cup-recesses a, into which the corn` nds its Way as the' drum revolves, in the operation of the machine, and is dropped at prescribed distances or intervals, accordingly as the soil is richer or poorer, and it may be desired to make theJ hills wider apart or .nearer together, the sliding covers DD over said drum enabling me to control thismatter by covering all the recesses at pleasure from which it is not desired to drop the seed in any given eld.

The seed, as they leave the recesses and 'fall into the central opening or conduit b in the shoe and trench-- opener E, are conducted by said opener b to the bottom of the trench made by said opener.

Lhe shaft B is provided with a crank, c, to which, by a propercrank, a crank-arm or pitman, F, is secured at its front extremity.

The pitman F is provided at its centre with a pin, 1, which projects from its side through an elongated slot in a iixed plate-standard, G, that is securely fastened to one of the longitudinal pieces of the frame Y importanp, .for thereby the regular rotation of the seed-dropping,drum C is secured in the reverse direction to the rotation of the wheel Il, and all danger of the said drum stopping on the dead-points of the crauk'c is 'rendered impossible.

The lengthof the slot in the standard G must be equal to the stroke of the cranks c d., and it must beV cut in the direction of its length Aprecisely coincident tothe line between the centres of the axes o'f vthe shaft l) and the wheel H.

Between the wheel H and the shoe E, a covering triangular fluke, J, is secured by pendant'adjustahle rods e c', substantially as shown.

The point of' the iiuke J is placed exactlyin the centre of the machine, and hence, it followsin the line of the conduit b, in the shoe E, and therefore of the corn that drops thronghthe same into the trench made by the said shoe.

The ofiice performed by the linke J isto cover-the seed immediately after being'dropped in the trench, so that the wheel H, which is provided .with a broad tread or tire for the purpose, (see iig. 3,) as it comes over the seed, will press the earth down upon them, whilstit carries forward the machine, and, through the agency of the pitman F and its adj uncts,

.at the same time operates'the drum C;

Having thus described my invention,

What I clainnand desireto secure by Letters Patent, im-

1. The pitman F, provided with apin, 1, which works in a slot in a fixed plate-standard, G, in combination with a seed-dropping drum or cylinder G and regulating sliding covers D D', ivhen those several parts are' constructed, arranged, and operate substantially as herein described, for the purpose set-forth.

2. The above combination, in combination with a trenchopening shoe .E and a covering-fluke, J, sublstanthlly as herein described, for the purpose set forthl w. n. TUNNARD.

Witnesses RUFUs R. RHODES, N. JENKINS. 

